Jan 13 - Is January The Most Depressing Month of The Year?
By Shameem Guilliano
It’s January 2015 - a brand new year and hopefully some brand new goals in mind. We’ve all finished eating as much as humanly possible, drinking more alcohol than we would normally and attending the most social functions of the year – we’re burnt out when January comes along. You’ve had two weeks off work (if you’ve been lucky) and now it’s back to the daily grind. If you enjoy your job then maybe you’ve been replying to the odd work-related email over the holidays and now you’re ready to get back to your desk and get things done. If not, then this is the most depressing month of the year for you…
You’re more likely to re-consider your life choices and whether you’re actually happy at your job during the month of January. Job website Monster.co.uk found that 75% of poll-takers were more likely to search for a new job after returning from a holiday while Jobsite.co.uk announced each January 40% of us look for a new job. Is it worth continuing the new year at a job you dislike or, in fact, doing anything you don’t enjoy doing? Honestly, it depends. If you have a family to support and a mortgage to pay off then maybe you don’t have as much of a choice. If you have nothing tying you down then now is the time to explore new career paths and new experiences. Of course this is all subjective and by no means one-size-fits-all advice – I myself haven’t done much in terms of new experiences but I’m hoping to change that this year.
Of course in Gibraltar it’s hard to find that one job that you can enjoy as there’s a lack of variety and I’ve been told by many friends recently that that’s the way it is and no one is ever truly happy working, ever. I might be somewhat naive with this subject but I refuse to believe I have to work a 9-5 everyday for the rest of my life that I hate. What’s the point? Sure, the job might pay well and you can spend that money on buying experiences that make you happy, but after you do those things you have to go back to work and start the monotonous flipping back and forth between sad/happy all over again. Why mess with our emotions? I think we owe it to ourselves to try and maintain some emotional consistency.
If anything, January should be the best month of the year – a month of clarity and self-analysis where you can take stock of your life, make any necessary changes and take some risks.
